Braided footwear with integrated laces and methods for their manufacture

ABSTRACT

A braided article of footwear and a method is provided for forming a braided article of footwear. The method includes braiding a unitary braided upper (100) having at least a main body (120) and independently braiding at least one braided lace (122, 124, 160, 164) while braiding the unitary upper (100). At a lace integration portion (130) of the unitary braided upper (100), the method includes integrating the at least one braided lace (122, 124, 160, 164) into the unitary braided upper (100).

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Aspects herein relate braided articles and in particular, braidedarticles of footwear.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Traditional shoes are often made from textiles or materials that haveuppers that are cut to a desired shape and stitched together. Newermethods also now include forming shoe uppers from a knitted textile.Still newer methods involve braiding a tubular textile for use as theshoe upper. Aspects herein relate to braiding tubular structures that insome aspects are used in articles of footwear. Traditional shoes oftenalso have a separate lace closure system to tighten or secure thefootwear to a user's foot. Aspects herein relate to a braided upper forfootwear that has an integrally braided lace closure system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

Aspects herein is described in detail below with reference to theattached drawing figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 depicts a perspective view of a braiding machine in accordancewith aspects herein;

FIG. 2 depicts a schematic top-down view of the braiding machine in aninitial configuration in accordance with aspects herein;

FIG. 3 depicts a schematic top-down view of the braiding machine in anactive configuration in accordance with aspects herein;

FIG. 4 depicts a schematic top-down view of the braiding machine in adifferent active configuration from FIG. 3 in accordance with aspectsherein;

FIG. 5 depicts a top plan view of an aspect of a braided upper, with thebraids shown schematically, in accordance with aspects herein;

FIG. 6 depicts a side perspective view of an aspect of a braided upper,with the braids shown schematically, in accordance with aspects herein;

FIG. 7 depicts a plan view of an aspect of a braided upper, on a last,in accordance with aspects herein;

FIG. 8 depicts a plan view similar to FIG. 7, but with the braided laceslaced through the eyelets of the braided upper in accordance withaspects herein;

FIG. 9 depicts a method of making a braided upper in accordance withaspects herein;

FIG. 10 depicts an enlarged portion of a braided upper in accordancewith aspects herein; and

FIG. 11 depicts a side view of an aspect of a braided upper, with thebraids not shown for clarity, but showing other aspects.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Aspects described herein are directed to braided articles and methodsfor their manufacture. Braiding offers many advantages over knitting orweaving such as, for example, the reduction of frictional forces appliedto the yarns used in the creation of the braided structure, the abilityto use high denier yarns (e.g., between 800D to 20000D, between 1000D to10000D, between 1000D to 5000D, and the like), the ability to combinedifferent types of yarns with non-yarn materials such as, for example,rubber strands, ropes, metals, and the like.

Braiding is a process of interlacing or interweaving three or more yarnsdiagonally to a product axis in order to obtain a thicker, wider orstronger product or in order to cover (overbraid) some profile.Interlacing diagonally means that the yarns make an angle with theproduct axis, which can be between 1° and 89° but is usually in therange of 30°-80°. This angle is called the braiding angle. Braids can belinear products (ropes), hollow tubular shells or solid articles (one,two or three-dimensional textiles) with constant or variablecross-section, and of closed or open appearance.

As used herein, the yarns, filaments, or other materials used forbraiding may be formed of different materials having differentproperties. The properties that a particular yarn or other will impartto an area of a braided component partially depend upon the materialsthat form the yarn. Cotton, for example, provides a softer product,natural aesthetics, and biodegradability. Elastane and stretch polyestereach provide substantial stretchability and fast recovery, with stretchpolyester also providing recyclability. Rayon provides high luster andmoisture absorption. Wool provides high moisture absorption in additionto having insulating properties and biodegradability. Nylon is a durableand abrasion-resistant material with relatively high strength. Polyesteris a hydrophobic material that also provides relatively high durability.In addition to materials, other aspects of the yarn selected forformation of a braided component may affect the properties of thebraided component. For example, a yarn may be a monofilament or amultifilament. The yarn may also include separate filaments that areeach formed of different materials. In addition, the yarn may includefilaments that are each formed of two or more different materials, suchas a bicomponent yarn with filaments having a sheath-core configurationor two halves formed of different materials.

As stated above, braided articles can be formed as tubular braids on abraiding machine. Different types of braiding machines such as a radial,axial or lace are available. One example of a lace braiding machine canbe found in Ichikawa, EP 1 486 601, granted May 9, 2007 entitled“Torchon Lace Machine” and EP No. 2 657 384, published Oct. 30, 2013entitled “Torchon Lace Machine,” the entirety of which are herebyincorporated by reference. The upper portion of an exemplary braidingmachine 10 is shown in FIG. 1. Braiding machine 10 includes a pluralityof spools 12. In some embodiments, the spools 12 carry the yarn 14selected for braiding. The yarns 14 from individual spools areselectively interlaced or intertwined with one another by the braidingmachine 10. This interlacing or intertwining of strands forms a braidedarticle 16, as further described below. Each of the spools 12 issupported and constrained by a track 18 about the circumference of thebraiding machine 10. Each spool 12 has a tensioner 20 (shownschematically in FIG. 1) that operates, along with a roller 22, tomaintain a desired tension in the yarns 14 and the braided article 16.As the yarns 14 extend upwardly, they pass through a braid ring 24 thatis generally considered the braiding point. The braiding point isdefined as the point or area where yarns 14 consolidate to form braidedarticle 16. At or near braid ring 24, the distance between yarns 14 fromdifferent spools 12 diminishes. As the distance between yarns 14 isreduced, the yarns 14 intermesh (i.e. interlace) or braid with oneanother in a tighter fashion and are pulled linearly by roller 22.

As best seen in FIG. 2, each spool 12 is carried and supported by acarriage 26. Each spool 12 is movable about the circumference of thetrack 18 by rotor metals 28. As described on the Torchon Lace Machinereferenced previously, and disclosed in EP 1 486 601, each of the rotormetals 28 can be moved clockwise or counterclockwise. In contrast toradial braiding machines or fully non-jacquard machines, in a lacebraiding machine, each rotor metal is not intermeshed with the adjacentrotor metal. Instead, each rotor metal 28 may be selectivelyindependently movable. As can be seen by comparing FIG. 3 to FIG. 4, asthe rotor metals 28 rotate, they move the carriages 26, and thus thespools 12 supported on the carriages 26 by moving them about thecircumference of the track 18. The braiding machine 10 is programmablesuch that the individual rotor metals 28 rotate the carriages 26, andthus the spools 12 to move them about the circumference of the track 18.As an individual spool 12 moves relative to an adjacent spool 12, theyarns 14 carried on the spools 12 interlace to create a desired braidpattern. The movement of spools 12 may be pre-programmed to formparticular shapes, designs, and to specify thread densities of a braidedcomponent or portions of a braided component. By varying the rotationand location of individual spools 12 various braid configurations may beformed. Such an exemplary braiding machine may form intricate braidconfigurations including both jacquard and non-jacquard braidconfigurations or geometries. Such configurations and geometries offerdesign possibilities beyond those offered by other textiles, such asknitting or weaving.

In some aspects, the size of braiding machine 10 may be varied. Itshould be understood that the braiding machine 10 shown and described isfor illustrative purposes only. In some aspects, braiding machine 10 maybe able to accept, for example, 144 carriages, although other sizes ofbraiding machines, carrying different numbers of carriages and spools ispossible and is within the scope of this disclosure. By varying thenumber of carriages and spools within a braiding machine, the density ofthe braided articles as well as the size of the braided component may bealtered.

One aspect of the technology described herein is related to a braidedarticle of footwear comprising a sole and a braided upper coupled to thesole. The braided upper has a medial side, a lateral side opposite themedial side, where each of the lateral and medial sides has an underfootedge proximate the sole. The medial and lateral sides have a toeportion, a heel portion, a throat portion, and a midfoot portion. Thebraided upper further includes at least one braided lace integrated withthe braided upper, at a lace integration portion of the braided upper.In some aspects, the braided upper includes at least two braided lacesintegrated with the braided upper at each edge of the throat of theupper.

In one aspect, a braided article of footwear is provided comprising asole and a braided upper. The braided article of footwear may alsoinclude at least one braided lace that is integrated with the braidedupper at a lace integration portion. The throat portion is defined by atleast a first edge and an opposite second edge spaced from the firstedge. The braided upper comprises a first plurality of arcuate braidedeyelets formed along the first edge of the throat portion and a secondplurality of arcuate braided eyelets formed along the second edge of thethroat portion. Each of the first plurality of arcuate braided eyeletsand the second plurality of arcuate braided eyelets are contiguouslybraided with the upper.

In one aspect, a method is provided for forming a braided article offootwear. In one aspect, the method includes braiding a unitary braidedupper having at least a main body and independently braiding at leastone braided lace while braiding the unitary upper. At a lace integrationportion of the unitary braided upper, the method includes integratingthe at least one braided lace into the unitary braided upper.

Turning now to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, a top view and a perspective view ofan exemplary braided upper 100 are shown, provided in accordance withaspects herein. The braided upper 100 has a medial side 102 and alateral side 104. In addition, the medial side 102 and the lateral side104 may further be defined as having a toe portion 106, a heel portion108 and a mid-foot portion 110. Further, the braided upper 100 includesa defined throat portion 112 having a medial edge 114 and a lateral edge116 that project from a throat base 117. The braided upper 100 furtherhas a collar portion 118. The medial side 102, lateral side 104, toeportion 106, heel portion 108, mid-foot portion 110, throat portion 112and collar portion 118 may be collectively referred to as the main body120 of braided upper 100. The braid pattern of main body 120 is shownschematically in FIG. 5, for simplicity. Any of a number of braidpatterns are suitable for the main body 120.

The braided upper 100 also includes a first braided lace 122 and asecond braided lace 124. First braided lace 122 and second braided lace124 are braided independently, and contiguously, to the main body 120 ofbraided upper 100. If the braided upper 100 is braided in the directionfrom the toe portion 106 toward the heel portion 108, first braided lace122 and second braided lace 124 are braided on the same braiding machine(such as braiding machine 10) and at the same time as main body 120. Asthe braiding of main body 120 advances to the throat portion 112, thefirst braided lace 122 and second braided lace 124 are braided into themain body 120 at the base 117 of the throat portion 112 at a laceintegration portion 130. The main body 120 may also, in some aspects,include integrally braided eyelets 132 (shown schematically in FIG. 5and FIG. 6) along the medial edge 114 and lateral edge 116 of the throatportion 112. In the worn condition, first braided lace 122 and secondbraided lace 124 may be laced through the eyelets 132 in any of a numberof lacing patterns, as further discussed below with reference to FIG. 8.In some aspects, main body 120 is braided with a base yarn, and thefirst and second braided laces 122, 124 are braided with a highperformance yarn. The main body 120 may also have high performance yarnsand base yarns braided together to form the main body 120 to addstructural integrity and support to the braided upper. For example, thehigh performance yarns may include high tenacity yarns that have higherstrength than the base yarns such as carbon fiber yarns, aramid fiberyarns, liquid crystal polymer yarns, high strength nylon yarns, and thelike. Additionally or alternatively, the high performance yarns inaccordance with aspects herein may, for example, be high denier yarnsranging between, 800D and 20000D, 1000D and 10000D, 1000D and 9000D,1000D and 5000D, and the like. Further, the high performance yarns inaccordance with aspects herein may further include, for example,composite yarns that may include filaments that are each formed of twoor more different materials, such as in a bicomponent yarn withfilaments having a sheath-core configuration or two halves formed ofdifferent material. The composite yarns may include, for example, apolyester core, a nylon core, or any of the high tenacity material yarnsdescribed above as the core and a thermoplastic material sheath, suchas, for example, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), a silicone basedthermoplastic material, and the like. The bicomponent yarns inaccordance with aspects herein may be further processed, for example, tocreate locked down areas for the article of footwear by selectivelyapplying heat to melt the thermoplastic material only in certain areasof the article of footwear where the composite yarn is present (e.g.,using a masking technique to protect other areas). While not shown inFIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the main body 120 may include an eyelet structureincorporated as an overlay attached to the main body 120 along themedial edge 114 and lateral edge 116 of the throat portion 112.

FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 show an additional aspect with braided upper 100 shownon a last 140. In one aspect, the main body 120 of braided upper 100 isbraided in a braid pattern with a base yarn 142 in addition to a highperformance yarn 144. In some aspects, the high performance yarn 144 isalso used to integrally braid eyelets 132 along the throat portion 112.The eyelets 132 may be contiguous with the braid pattern of the highperformance yarn, such that tension on the eyelets 132 is transferred to(and through) the remainder of the braid pattern of the high performanceyarn. As shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the first braided lace 122 and thesecond braided lace 124 are integrally braided with the main body 120 ofthe upper, and are incorporated into the main body 120 at the laceintegration portion 130. Again, the first braided lace 122 and secondbraided lace 124 may be independently braided at the same time as mainbody 120 is being braided, and on the same braiding machine (such asbraiding machine 10). The braiding of the first and second laces 122,124 continues independently from the main body 120, until reaching thelace integration portion 130, at which point the first and second laces122, 124 are integrated into the main body 120, as shown in FIG. 7 andFIG. 8. The term independently braided generally refers to thesimultaneous braiding of two independent braid structures by onebraiding machine during one braiding operation. At the lace integrationportion 130, the independent braid structures (the main body 120, thefirst braided lace 122 and the second braided lace 124) are mergedand/or inter-braided. In aspects, the braiding operation may also startat the toe portion 106 and proceed to the heel portion 108. In such acase, the braided upper 100 is braided until the lace integrationportion 130 is reached, at which point the remainder of the main body120 of braided upper 100 is independently braided from the first braidedlace 122 and the second braided lace 124. In other words, the remainderof main body 120 of braided upper is braided at the same time, butindependently from, the first braided lace 122 and the second braidedlace 124, such that the first and second braided laces 122, 124 areintegral with the main body 120, but project separately from the mainbody 120. In some aspects, a high performance yarn (which may be thesame as, or different from, the high performance yarn 144) is used tobraid the first and second laces 122, 124. FIG. 8 shows the first andsecond braided laces 122, 124 in the as-worn condition in one example ofa lace pattern, crisscrossing through eyelets 132.

In some aspects, the braided framework for the main body 120 of braidedupper is contiguously braided with the eyelets 132 along the throatportion 112. In some aspects, the eyelets 132 are braided independentlyfrom the main body 120. In other words, the eyelets 132 may be on aseparate plane or braided layer. Each braided eyelet comprises an exitlocation 134 (also referred to as the first location), and an entrylocation 136 (also referred to as the second location). An individualbraided eyelet 132, for example, is contiguously braided with the mainbraided layer forming the main body 120 of braided upper 100 and as partof the braided framework of the main body 120, up to the edge (eithermedial edge 114 or lateral edge 116) of the throat portion 112 of thebraided upper 100. Once the braided framework reaches the edge of thethroat portion 112, the eyelet 132 continues to be braidedseparately/independently from the throat starting at exit location 134for a predetermined length and then is reincorporated into the main body120 of the braided upper 100 at an entry location 136. In other words,the eyelets 132 briefly form a second braided layer at the medial edge114 and lateral edge 116 of the unitary braided upper 100.

In one aspect, the first and second braided laces 122, 124 cooperatewith the high performance yarns 144 in the braid pattern of the mainbody 120 to add tension across the braided upper 100 in a controlledpattern as the high performance yarns 144 of the main body are pulled bythe first and second braided laces 122, 124 though the eyelets 132.

While shown at the base of the throat portion 112, the lace integrationportion 130 may, in some aspects, be located at different points alongthe main body 120. Further, the first braided lace 122 and the secondbraided lace 124 could be any of a variety of lengths based on thedesired lacing pattern, the type of footwear for which braided upper 100is used, etc.

In some aspects, the space or gap 148 between the lateral edges ofthroat portion 112 may be closed by providing a tongue element (notshown), or a braided elastic portion covering a top portion of awearer's foot when the braided article of footwear is worn by a wearer.The braided elastic portion may comprise, for example, elastic yarns toaid in the donning and doffing of the article of footwear, and at thesame time, to aid in securing the article of footwear on the last 140 ora wearer's foot when the article of footwear is worn. In some aspects, asole 150 may be coupled to the braided upper 100 along a joint edge 152,as shown in FIG. 8, to complete the article of footwear.

Although the braided framework shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 forms acrisscross pattern profile other pattern profiles, such as, for example,linear, curvilinear, organic, geometric, logos, and the like, arepossible and are within the scope of this disclosure.

Turning now to FIG. 9, a method 900 of braiding a braided upper (such asthe braided upper 1000 of FIGS. 5-8) through the interbraiding of atleast an independently braided lace and a main body is provided inaccordance with aspects herein. At block 902B, at least one lace and aportion of the main body of a footwear upper are independently braided.As described above, this independent braiding may be done on the samebraiding machine (such as braiding machine 10) using a portion of thespools 12 to braid the main body (such as main body 120) and a differentportion of the spools 12 to braid the at least one lace (such as eitherfirst braided lace 122 or second braided lace 124. Each of the at leastone lace and the main body portion may be braided with the same, ordifferent yarns.

At block 904, at a lace integration portion (such as lace integrationportion 130), the braiding machine 10 may be configured to inter-braidthe independently braided at least one lace and the main body portion,joining the at least one lace to the main body portion through thebraiding process. The lace integration portion may occur in any portionof the braided upper 100. In one aspect, the lace integration portion islocated at, or near, the base of the throat portion (such as throatportion 112). At block 906, the method includes finishing or completingthe braiding of the braided footwear upper.

FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 show an additional aspect somewhat similar to FIG. 7and FIG. 8. FIG. 10 shows a top plan view of a portion of braided upper100 in one aspect. Like the braided upper of FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the mainbody 120 of braided upper 100 is braided in a braid pattern with a baseyarn 142 in addition to a high performance yarn 144. The highperformance yarn 144 may be integrally braided with the base yarn 142,or in some aspects may be woven with the base yarn 142. In some aspectsthe first braided lace 122 and the second braided lace 124 are eachformed from six individual high performance yarns 144 that are woveninto the base yarn 142 in the main body 120 of upper 100. As shown inFIG. 10, at the lace integration portion 130, the individual highperformance yarns 144 are braided together to form first braided lace122 and second braided lace 124. FIG. 10 also shows a third braided lace160 and a fourth braided lace 162. In some aspects the third braidedlace 160 and the fourth braided lace 162 are each formed from fourindividual high performance yarns 144 that are woven into the base yarn142 in the main body 120 of upper 100. As shown in FIG. 10, at the laceintegration portion 130 just above first braided lace 122 and secondbraided lace 124, the individual high performance yarns 144 are braidedtogether to form third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162.Having two braided laces on each side of throat portion 112 helps toreduce pressure points along the throat portion to distribute the forceapplied to the main body 120 by first braided lace 122, second braidedlace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162. The highperformance yarns 144 woven into the main body 120 and braided intofirst braided lace 122, second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160and fourth braided lace 162 form a containment zone that allows addedlateral foot stability with a minimal upper structure. The integrallybraided first braided lace 122, second braided lace 124, third braidedlace 160 and fourth braided lace 162 provide support for upper 100 inthe direction of shear forces generated in the worn condition, such aswhen a user is changing direction laterally (“cutting”). As the firstbraided lace 122, second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160 andfourth braided lace 162 are tightened, the performance yarns 144 woveninto main body 120 tighten around the user's foot, along with thesurrounding braided portion formed by base yarns 142. This is anadvantage of a braided structure that allows forces delivered in oneportion to be distributed across the entire braided structure,effectively allowing the main body 120 to tighten across a user's footwhen worn. In some aspects, the high performance yarn 144 is also usedto integrally braid eyelets 132 along the throat portion 112. Each offirst braided lace 122, second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160and fourth braided lace 162 are integrated into the main body 120 of theupper, and are incorporated into the main body 120 at the laceintegration portion 130. Again, first braided lace 122, second braidedlace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162 may beindependently braided at the same time as main body 120 is beingbraided, and on the same braiding machine (such as braiding machine 10).The braiding of first braided lace 122, second braided lace 124, thirdbraided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162 continues independentlyfrom the main body 120, until reaching the lace integration portion 130,at which point the high performance yarn strands 144 of first braidedlace 122, second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourthbraided lace 162 are integrated into the main body 120, as shown in FIG.10. The term independently braided generally refers to the simultaneousbraiding of two independent braid structures by one braiding machineduring one braiding operation. At the lace integration portion 130, theindependent braid structures (the main body 120, first braided lace 122,second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace162) are merged, woven and/or inter-braided. In aspects, the braidingoperation may also start at the toe portion 106 and proceed to the heelportion 108. In such a case, the braided upper 100 is braided with baseyarn 142 and the high performance yarn strands 144 of first braided lace122, second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourth braidedlace 162 are merged, woven and/or inter-braided with the main body 120until the lace integration portion 130 is reached, at which point theremainder of the main body 120 of braided upper 100 is independentlybraided from first braided lace 122, second braided lace 124, thirdbraided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162. In other words, theremainder of main body 120 of braided upper is braided at the same time,but independently from, first braided lace 122, second braided lace 124,third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162, such that firstbraided lace 122, second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160 andfourth braided lace 162 are integral with the main body 120, but projectseparately from the main body 120.

As discussed above with respect to FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the eyelets 132may be contiguous with the braid pattern of the high performance yarn144, such that tension on the eyelets 132 is transferred to (andthrough) the remainder of the braid pattern of the high performanceyarn. FIG. 11 shows second braided lace 124 and fourth braided lace 162in the as-worn condition in one example of a lace pattern, crisscrossingthrough eyelets 132. One aspect of a different pattern for the highperformance yarn 144 forming eyelets 132 is shown in FIG. 11. As shown,high performance yarn 144 may extend under main body 120 of braidedupper 100 and upwardly towards throat portion 112 in a vertical section164, exiting throat portion 112 at exit location 134, and re-entering atentry location 136 to form eyelet 132. High performance yarn 144 maythen continue in a generally orthogonal orientation to vertical section164 in a horizontal section 166 that wraps around heel portion 108. Asshown in FIG. 11, a series of high performance yarns 144 may be used toform the desired number of eyelets 132 (with four eyelets being shown inFIG. 11). More, or fewer, eyelets can be so formed with high performanceyarn 144 in other aspects. Additionally, the yarn used for first braidedlace 122, second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourthbraided lace 162 may differ from the high performance yarn 144 used toform eyelets 132 in some aspects. Note that in FIG. 11, the braidpattern of braided upper 100 is not shown to clarify the location of thehigh performance yarn 144 in this aspect. The braided upper 100, withhigh performance yarns 144 forming first braided lace 122, secondbraided lace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162, aswell as extending through upper 100 to form eyelets 132, all allow thebraided upper 100 to provide containment for a user's foot in the asworn condition when the first braided lace 122, second braided lace 124,third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace 162 are tightened. Thehigh performance yarns 144 together with the braided pattern of braidedupper 100 form a containment net that provides containment forces tosurround the foot, providing added stability. First braided lace 122,second braided lace 124, third braided lace 160 and fourth braided lace162 provide a containment zone to support to upper 100 in the directionof shear forces exerted during lateral movement to contain the footduring lateral movement, or “cutting.”

In some aspects, the braided framework for the main body 120 of braidedupper is contiguously braided with the eyelets 132 along the throatportion 112. In some aspects, the eyelets 132 are braided independentlyfrom the main body 120. In other words, the eyelets 132 may be on aseparate plane or braided layer. Each braided eyelet comprises an exitlocation 134 (also referred to as the first location), and an entrylocation 136 (also referred to as the second location). An individualbraided eyelet 132, for example, is contiguously braided with the mainbraided layer forming the main body 120 of braided upper 100 and as partof the braided framework of the main body 120, up to the edge (eithermedial edge 114 or lateral edge 116) of the throat portion 112 of thebraided upper 100. Once the braided framework reaches the edge of thethroat 112, the eyelet 132 continues to be braidedseparately/independently from the throat starting at exit location 134for a predetermined length and then is reincorporated into the main body120 of the braided upper 100 at an entry location 136. In other words,the eyelets 132 briefly form a second braided layer at the medial edge114 and lateral edge 116 of the unitary braided upper 100.

In one aspect, the first and second braided laces 122, 124 cooperatewith the high performance yarns 144 in the braid pattern of the mainbody 120 to add tension across the braided upper 100 in a controlledpattern as the high performance yarns 144 of the main body are pulled bythe first and second braided laces 122, 124 though the eyelets 132.

While shown at the base of the throat portion 112, the lace integrationportion 130 may, in some aspects, be located at different points alongthe main body 120. Further, the first braided lace 122 and the secondbraided lace 124 could be any of a variety of lengths based on thedesired lacing pattern, the type of footwear for which braided upper 100is used, etc.

In some aspects, the space or gap 148 between the lateral edges ofthroat portion 112 may be closed by providing a tongue element (notshown), or a braided elastic portion covering a top portion of awearer's foot when the braided article of footwear is worn by a wearer.The braided elastic portion may comprise, for example, elastic yarns toaid in the donning and doffing of the article of footwear, and at thesame time, to aid in securing the article of footwear on the last 140 ora wearer's foot when the article of footwear is worn. In some aspects, asole 150 may be coupled to the braided upper 100 along a joint edge 152,as shown in FIG. 8, to complete the article of footwear.

Although the braided framework shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 forms acrisscross pattern profile other pattern profiles, such as, for example,linear, curvilinear, organic, geometric, logos, and the like, arepossible and are within the scope of this disclosure.

The following clauses represent example aspects of concepts contemplatedherein. Any one of the following clauses may be combined in a multipledependent manner to depend from one or more other clauses. Further, anycombination of dependent clauses (clauses that explicitly depend from aprevious clause) may be combined while staying within the scope ofaspects contemplated herein. The following clauses are illustrative innature and are not limiting.

Clause 1. A braided article of footwear comprising: a sole; a braidedupper coupled to the sole and having a toe portion, a heel portion, amidfoot portion extending between the toe portion and the heel portion,and a throat portion; and at least one braided lace integrated with thebraided upper, at a lace integration portion of the braided upper.

Clause 2. The braided article of footwear of clause 1, wherein thethroat portion includes a base, and the lace integration portion islocated at the base of the throat portion.

Clause 3. The braided article of footwear of any of the precedingclauses, wherein at least two braided laces are integrated with thebraided upper, at the lace integration portion of the braided upper.

Clause 4. The braided article of footwear of any of the precedingclauses, wherein the braided upper is braided with a first yarn and theat least one braided lace is braided with a second yarn, different fromthe first yarn.

Clause 5. The braided article of footwear of clause 4, wherein thesecond yarn is a high performance yarn.

Clause 6. The braided article of footwear of clause 5, wherein the highperformance yarn comprises one or more of a thermoplastic coatedpolyester yarn, an aramid material yarn, a liquid crystal material yarn,a carbon fiber yarn, or a combination thereof.

Clause 7. The braided article of footwear of any of the precedingclauses, wherein the throat portion includes a medial edge and a lateraledge, further comprising a plurality of integrally braided eyelets alongeach of the medial edge and lateral edge of the throat portion.

Clause 8. The braided article of footwear of clause 7, wherein theplurality of integrally braided eyelets are braided with a highperformance yarn.

Clause 9. The braided article of footwear of clause 7, wherein at leasttwo braided laces are integrated with the braided upper along the medialedge of the throat portion and at least two braided laces are integratedwith the braided upper along the lateral edge of the throat portion.

Clause 10. A method of forming a braided article of footwear, the methodcomprising: braiding a unitary braided upper having at least a main bodyand independently braiding at least one braided lace while braiding theunitary upper; at a lace integration portion of the unitary braidedupper, integrating the at least one braided lace into the unitarybraided upper.

Clause 11. The method of clause 10, wherein the integrating the at leastone braided lace into the unitary braided upper is performed byinterlacing a plurality of yarns of the at least one braided lace and aplurality of yarns of the unitary braided upper in at least twodifferent directions.

Clause 12. The method of any of the preceding clauses, furthercomprising forming the main body of the unitary braided upper having atoe portion, a heel portion, a medial midfoot portion and a lateralmidfoot portion between the toe portion and the heel portion, a throatportion between the medial midfoot portion and the lateral midfootportion, and an underfoot portion, and braiding a plurality ofintegrally braided eyelets, each eyelet in the plurality of integrallybraided eyelets having an exit point and an entry point into the mainbody.

Clause 13. The method of clause 12, further comprising affixing a soleto the underfoot portion of the braided upper.

Clause 14. The method of clause 12, wherein the throat has a medial sideand a lateral side, the method further comprising, and at the laceintegration portion of the unitary braided upper, integrating at leasttwo braided laces into the unitary braided upper along each of themedial side and the lateral side.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that this invention is one welladapted to attain all the ends and objects hereinabove set forthtogether with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherentto the structure.

It will be understood that certain features and sub-combinations are ofutility and may be employed without reference to other features andsub-combinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of theclaims.

Since many possible embodiments may be made of the invention withoutdeparting from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matterherein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to beinterpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:
 1. A braided article of footwear comprising: a sole;a braided upper coupled to the sole and having a toe portion, a heelportion, a midfoot portion extending between the toe portion and theheel portion, and a throat portion; and at least one braided laceintegrated with the braided upper, at a lace integration portion of thebraided upper.
 2. The braided article of footwear of claim 1, whereinthe throat portion includes a base, and the lace integration portion islocated at the base of the throat portion.
 3. The braided article offootwear of claim 1, wherein at least two braided laces are integratedwith the braided upper, at the lace integration portion of the braidedupper.
 4. The braided article of footwear of claim 1, wherein thebraided upper is braided with a first yarn and the at least one braidedlace is braided with a second yarn, different from the first yarn. 5.The braided article of footwear of claim 4, wherein the second yarn is ahigh performance yarn.
 6. The braided article of footwear of claim 5,wherein the high performance yarn comprises one or more of athermoplastic coated polyester yarn, an aramid material yarn, a liquidcrystal material yarn, a carbon fiber yarn, or a combination thereof. 7.The braided article of footwear of claim 1, wherein the throat portionincludes a medial edge and a lateral edge, further comprising aplurality of integrally braided eyelets along each of the medial edgeand the lateral edge of the throat portion.
 8. The braided article offootwear of claim 7, wherein the plurality of integrally braided eyeletsare braided with a high performance yarn.
 9. The braided article offootwear of claim 7, wherein at least two braided laces are integratedwith the braided upper along the medial edge of the throat portion andthe at least two braided laces are integrated with the braided upperalong the lateral edge of the throat portion.
 10. A method of forming abraided article of footwear, the method comprising: braiding a unitarybraided upper having at least a main body and independently braiding atleast one braided lace while braiding the unitary upper; at a laceintegration portion of the unitary braided upper, integrating the atleast one braided lace into the unitary braided upper.
 11. The method ofclaim 10, wherein the integrating the at least one braided lace into theunitary braided upper is performed by interlacing a plurality of yarnsof the at least one braided lace and a plurality of yarns of the unitarybraided upper in at least two different directions.
 12. The method ofclaim 11, further comprising forming the main body of the unitarybraided upper having a toe portion, a heel portion, a medial midfootportion and a lateral midfoot portion between the toe portion and theheel portion, a throat portion between the medial midfoot portion andthe lateral midfoot portion, and an underfoot portion, and braiding aplurality of integrally braided eyelets, each eyelet in the plurality ofintegrally braided eyelets having an exit point and an entry point intothe main body.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising affixing asole to the underfoot portion of the braided upper.
 14. The method ofclaim 12, wherein the throat portion has a medial side and a lateralside, the method further comprising, and at the lace integration portionof the unitary braided upper, integrating at least two braided lacesinto the unitary braided upper along each of the medial side and thelateral side.